When You Look Beyond.

There have been profound times in my life. Times that defined me.  Made me open my eyes to other realities.  There was a time that truly challenged me. The days when I was a support worker in a shelter for the homeless, the "rough sleepers", in the city of Stoke-on-Trent. 

To see those not fortunate on the street, despairing, dishevelled, brought out the best and the worst in passers-by.  Most too busy, to find that moment to see beyond the rags and to discover the reasons as to how it got that way.  Apathy, the not my problem, the pretend you don't see the homeless person, all too prevalent in a society that doesn't want to know. 

To be with them, to listen, to learn, opened my eyes to the stories that told of a world that many had never envisioned.  I understood from their heart-breaking stories, that one moment you can have everything, the next, wondering if you'll survive the night.  

Those times working at the shelter provided me with lessons I cherish.  It's all too easy to make preconceived notions and assume the convenient stereotypes. Yet, when you look beyond, see the soul beyond the eyes, the truth can truly humble.

Imagine being cold, hungry, scared.  Your home, a cardboard box under a bridge.  Your home, a darkened shop doorway.  Imagine those who look at you in disgust without even knowing the torment that brought you to this hell on earth.  

In these times when the vulnerable, the poorest in society, are paying for the mistakes of the incompetent fortunate, you get moments like this.